This was from May 15th and Curbed talks about what's going on with the Billionaires who are vying to bring a casino to NYC. I still feel that Empire and Resort Worlds might be getting the license since they are already set up to go to bring in a live casino and not just video style games. That would make one license left if this happens. So, if that does happen who gets the third license.
From Curbed.com
Then Jay-Z, whose entertainment company Roc Nation is partnering with SL Green and Caesar’s on the Times Square casino bid, posted an open letter on Instagram, pleading with New Yorkers to pick him. “This is too important of a moment in our city’s illustrious history” the letter warned. New Yorkers should go with an operator who puts them “at the top of their agenda.” New Yorkers may be forgiven for having some doubts that a Times Square casino would really have their best interests at heart. Especially as the biggest sweetener — $115 million for diverse theater programs that include daycare for Broadway workers — seems aimed at softening up a group of Broadway owners who’ve been trying to block the Times Square casino. (Nor is it the first time Jay-Z has been deployed to win over casino skeptics: “I remember one of the companies excitedly told me about Jay-Z. ‘He’s coming on board. Maybe you want to meet him?’” state senator Liz Krueger told Bloomberg earlier this year.)
And then there’s Steve Cohen. “Uncle Stevie” has, of late, become something of a beloved New York figure for spending gobs of money on the Mets. Now he’s spending gobs of money — more than anyone else so far — on winning a casino license. (You may also remember when Cohen, a few years back, spent gobs of money paying the government an $1.8 billion penalty after his hedge fund was found guilty of securities fraud.) Cohen has hired eight firms, employed nearly two dozen lobbyists and spent over $1 million on a multimedia lobbying campaign, according to Bloomberg. There have been 14 ‘visioning’ sessions to win over Queens residents, hundreds of hot dogs, social media campaigns and “a website called ‘Queens Future’ to promote Cohen’s vision of building a Vegas-style casino in a parking lot next to Citi Field. “In Queens, we never settle for the status quo,” the website boasts. “We deserve better than 50 acres of asphalt.” Hard to disagree with that.
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